Warriors: Small Hope
by EpicBecky
Summary: A revamp of my 2012 Warriors fanfiction, The Surviving Kit (found on my dA) Dreamsky was born early, and dangerously small. The Clan doubted her survival. But when Dreamsky grows up to be a strong and intelligent warrior, cats start to realize that she'll do more than just survive- she might just save the Clan.
1. Prologue

Allegiances

 **IvyClan:**

 **Leader:** Shellstar- White and ginger tom with bright blue eyes

-Apprentice: Echopaw

 **Deputy:** Sandflight- ginger and brown she-cat with green eyes

-Appretice: Mosspaw

 **Medicine cat:** Shadespots- dark gray and white she-cat with blue eyes

-Apprentice: Leafwhisker

 **Warriors:**

Silvershadow- silver tabby tom with green eyes

Apprentice- Ashpaw

Frostleaf- white tom with brown spots and dark blue eyes.

Dappleshine- tortoiseshell she-cat with white legs, face, belly and chest, blue eyes.

Flamefur- ginger she-cat with white paws and belly, blue eyes.

Dovewhisper- pale gray she cat with a dark gray stripe down her back and dark gray ears. Dark blue eyes.

Apprentice- Fuzzpaw

Darkfeather- black tom with a gray chest and yellow-green eyes

Bramblepatch- dark brown tabby tom with green eyes

Flamefur- ginger she-cat with blue eyes

Scorchtail- gray tom with a darker tail and yellow eyes.

Apprentice- Sunpaw

Gustpelt- smoky pale gray she-cat with green eyes.

Flareshade- ginger tabby she-cat with green eyes

Firestrike- golden-ginger she-cat with darker legs and green eyes

 **Queens:**

Russetpelt- ginger and white she-cat with pale green eyes

Kits- Dreamkit(tiny silver tabby she-kit with two dark paws and pale green eyes) and Cloudkit (gray and white she-kit white black stripes and blue eyes)

 **Apprentices:**

Mosspaw- tortoiseshell and white she-cat with amber eyes

Echopaw- small silver and white tabby she-cat with dark green eyes

Fuzzpaw- fluffy ginger she-cat with dark brown stripes on tail, dark brown ear tips and green eyes

Ashpaw- gray tom with dark ray and black patches, dark blue eyes

Sunpaw- golden tom with darker legs and ears, green eyes

 **Elders:**

Berrywhisker- white tom with pale brown tail and paws, pale amber eyes.

Ferntail- black and brown she-cat with dark green eyes.

Maplepelt- ginger she-cat with darker ears and dark green eyes.

 **BrightClan:**

 **Leader:** Shadowstar- black and orange tom with amber eyes

 **Deputy:** Ravenpelt- black she-cat with green eyes

 **Medicine cat:** Brackenthorn- golden-brown tom

Apprentice- Whisperpaw

 **Warriors:**

Longwhisker-

Morningaze- light brown tabby tom

Tallsky- dappled gray and white tom

Apprentice- Deeppaw

Cloudfur- white tom

Ravenpelt- black she-cat with green eyes

Pantherclaw- scarred black tom

 **Apprentices:**

Deeppaw- mottled dark gray tom

Whisperpaw- blue-gray tabby tom

 **Queens:**

Brightgaze- ginger she-cat with yellow eyes

Kits- Mudkit(patched brown tom with green eyes), Skykit(mottled silver-blue she-kit), Pebblekit(mottled gray tom), Darkkit(black tom)

 **Elders:**

Crookedfoot- brown tom with a twisted paw

 **HeatherClan:**

 **Leader:** Cloverstar- brown and white she-cat

 **Deputy:** Silverblaze- silver and white tabby she-cat

 **Medicine cat:** Stormsky- gray and white tom with blue eyes

 **Warriors:**

Dustwhisker- brown tabby tom

Applefoot- reddish she-cat with white paws

Oakstep- dark brown tom

 **Queens:**

Fallowbreeze- pale brown tabby she-cat with white belly and paws

Kit- Featherkit(silver and white she-kit)

 **SnowClan**

 **Leader:** Softstar- fawn-brown she-cat with a white flash on her chest

 **Deputy:** Pebblepelt- mottled gray tom

Apprentice- Swiftpaw

 **Medicine Cat:** Snowflower- white she-cat with a brown tail

 **Warriors:**

Mudflight- patched brown tom

Apprentice- Amberpaw

Poppyfur- white she-cat with golden and brown patches

Clearpool- silver she-cat

 **Apprentices:**

Swiftpaw- smoky gray and white tom

Amberpaw- golden she-cat with white and darker markings

 **Cats Outside of the Clans:**

Fox- ginger tom (former BrightClan cat)

Hawk- reddish tom (former BrightClan cat)

Thunder- gray she-cat (former BrightClan cat)

Prologue

Long after the four Clans fought their battles with the Dark Forest, a terrible infection spread through the Clans. It hit ThunderClan first, then moved on to the others. Every cat fought their hardest to beat the sickness, but to no avail. Every cat was wiped out, for the sickness crazed the cats who caught it, and drove them to attack everything they saw. Those who didn't catch the disease were killed.

But the spirit cats in StarClan found a new way to keep the Clans alive. Four cats were chosen- Brightheart, Ivypool, Snowfur and Heathertail- to travel to new, far away territories, and descend once again as living cats. Each cat sought out their own territories and recruited cats to form their own Clans. BrightClan made their home in a forest with thick undergrowth and trees of pine and oak. IvyClan's was similar, but less thick, with a large river cutting between the two. SnowClan chose to live on high hills, with a few trees and bushes scattered here and there. The river cut between their territory and HeatherClan's, which were also on hills, but lower down.

Many, many seasons after that, after generation and generation of leaders, in the forest of IvyClan, there was a small hollow, surrounded very thickly by trees and huge stones. A pile of stones crumbled into the hollow, forming the entrance. Behind a boulder, shrouded in ferns, the medicine cats slept in a small cave. Leafwhisker and his mate Shadespots, for the rule of medicine cats not taking mates had been lifted long ago, were curled up together in a bed of moss.

A sudden yowl of agony cut through the still night air. Leafwhisker woke instantly, his fur brisling with alarm. He shook Shadespots awake with a brown paw. "Shadespots!" he hissed.

"Wha…?" The dark she-cat lifted her head and blinked at him drowsily.

"I think Russetpelt's kits are coming!"

"What?" Shadepsots shot to her paws. "So soon? But they weren't due for another two moons!" Racing to er piles of herbs, she scooped some up, and Leafwhisker did the same. Side-by-side, the two of them bolted out of the den and raced across the camp, diving into the hole that was the entrance to the nursery.

Inside, a ginger and white queen lay, her face twisted in pain. A gray tabby she-cat was at her side, tryuing to comfort her while holding back her young. Leafwhisker could easily tell by the deep clawmarks in the dust that Russetpelt was having a hard time.

Both medicine cats worked for quite a while through the night, even when the noise brought almost every cat in the Clan running into the nursery. The moon was almost on the horizon by the time the kits were born.

Anxiously, while Shadspots checked on Russetpelt, Leafwhisker gazed at the tiny damp bundles of blood-covered fur. All of the kits were very small, and none of them were moving at all. He felt a sinking feeling in his belly.

"Leafwhisker…" Russetpelt croaked. "Where are my kits?"

Leafwhisker felt a lump in his throat as all eyes turned to him. "I…I'm sorry Russetpelt…they didn't make it."

Russetpelt stared at him for a few moments. The she tipped beck her head a let out a bloodcurdling yowl of grief that made Leafwhisker flinch. _I'm sorry!_ He wailed inwardly. After all, these kits were his kin too, through his father and Russetpelt's mate, Silvershadow.

"Wait!" A ginger apprentice bounced forward, peering at the dead kits. "I don't think this one's dead!" She nudged it with a white paw, and it moved, ever so slightly.

"Fuzzpaw's right." Shadespots confirmed, coming up beside Leafwhisker. "But I'm afraid she may still die." She grabbed the kit gently and placed it beside Russetpelt's belly. "Will you name her?"

"Yes." Russetpelt whispered. "She will be Dreamkit."

Leafwhisker shook himself. "All right everyone, if you're not a queen or a kit, o back to your dens. Give Russetpelt some space."

He and Shadspots were the last to leave after the others. As the padded out of the entrance, he paused, and Shadespots gave him a worried look. "What's wrong?" She asked.

"I failed Shadespots." Leafwhisker meowed dejectedly. "I lost three lives today, and I may still lose more."

"Oh, my love." Shadespots pressed her muzzle against his fur. "This was not your fault. It was simply StarClan's choice."

Leafwhisker didn't reply. Glancing up at the sky, he sent a prayer to the stars. _StarClan, please…look after this kit._

10


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

It was the sun breaking through the den entrance that made Dreamkit fuzzily open her eyes. Half-awake, she noticed that Russetpelt was not beside her; she must have gone to make dirt. Blinking, she tried to chase away the sleepy blur that had covered her vision, and she yawned.

And then, the next thing she knew was a blur of gray that swept past her and caused her to tumble from her nest in a flailing bundle of paws and tail.

"Cloudkit!" She shouted.

Dreamkit's littermate skidded to a halt and turned to Dreamkit. Well, she wasn't really Dreamkit's sister. She'd been found on IvyClan's territory the morning after Dreamkit was born. Her mother and littermates had been killed and so the patrol that found her had taken her into the camp and given her to Russetpelt to raise. But she still felt like a sister to Dreamkit all the same.

"I'm sorry!" Cloudkit gasped, though there was laughter in her eyes. "I didn't see you. But hey," She owe play?"

Dreamkit rolled over and sat up. "May as well." She grumbled, though she wasn't really upset. "What do you want to do?"

Before Cloudkit could reply, a shadow blocked the light coming from the entrance. Both kits turned to see two figures padding into the den, followed by Russetpelt. Dreamkit's mother went and sat at the far side of the den, while the other two cats padded up to Dreamkit and Cloudkit. Dreamkit recognized them as Fuzzpaw and Mosspaw, two of the oldest apprentices in the Clan, who had visited the kits once before.

"Hi guys!" Fuzzpaw chirped. She was a cheerful, wacky ginger tabby with fur so thick and fluffy that Dreamkit wondered how she stayed cool in Greenleaf. Her tortoiseshell sister Mosspaw was calmer and quiet, but still quite friendly.

"Hi!" Cloudkit squeaked. "Do you want to play with us?"

"Apprentices shouldn't _play_." A new voice sniffed. Dreamkit stared at the entrance as a small silver and white tabby padded in, a scowl on her face, green eyes glaring.

Mosspaw narrowed her amber eyes at the new cat. "Mind your own business Echopaw."

"Yeah, nobody asked your opinion." Fuzzpaw added.

"Don't be stupid." Echopaw scoffed. "Surely you know by now how important my opinion is?" She puffed out her chest and added smugly, "After all, I am the _leader's_ apprentice. You two weren't worthy if that now, were you?"

Dreamkit felt her fur spiking Agaisnt her better nature, she glared up at Echopaw. "Leave them alone!" She spat.

Echopaw's gaze shifted insolently towards her. "Ooh, look what we have here." She stalked over to the two kits. "A tiny scrap and her kittypet sister. How pathetic."

"Hey!" Cloudkit growled. "I'm no kittypet!"

Echopaw ignored her and continued talking to Dreamkit. "You'll make a weak warrior at best." She snorted. "If you live that long."

Before any cat could say anything, Russetpelt's voice drifted across the den. "What's going on over there?"

"Nothing Russetpelt!" Echopaw called sweetly, the contempt gone from her voice. "I was just introducing myself." Then, with another snort, she leaned down to Dreamkit. "You'd better stay out of my way tiny." She hissed. Flicking her tail, she turned and sauntered from the den.

"Sorry about her." Mosspaw sighed. "She picks on all the younger cats."

"She thinks she's so special, just because Shellstar's training her." Fuzzpaw growled. "He only picked her because he felt sorry for her though."

Dreamkit frowned and stared at the entrance. "Maybe she's just unhappy because she's so small. Like me."

Mosspaw shrugged. "Maybe. But you're not all bitter about it, are you?"

"I suppose not." Dreamkit agreed. But part of her still felt a little sorry for Echopaw.

"Hey, enough about that jerk Echopaw." Cloudkit piped up. "Let's go outside and play!" She bounded over to the entrance and happed outside, the two apprentices right behind her. Hesitating briefly, Dreamkit scampered after them. She pulled herself out if the hole and onto the grass and found herself staring around at the camp in wonder This was her second time outside, but it still stunned her. From here she could see the whole camp. Across the clearing was a huge rock that seemed to grow from one of the sloping sides of the camp. Dreamkit could see a hole behind it and remembered it was Shellstar's den. Near that was the medicine cat's den; a small gap in one of the piles of stone around the camp's edge. Next to that was the elder's den, an underground cave beneath the roots of a large tree, and the bushes on either side of the nursery were the warriors' and apprentices' dens.

Filled with sudden energy, Dreamkit launched herself forward, not looking where she was going. Her flying paws struck a small stone and she tripped, tumbling head-over-paws until she cannoned into a pile of fur and fell backwards.

"Are you ok?" Dreamkit glanced up to see a young patched gray tom staring down at her with concerned eyes of deepest blue. Dreamkit easily recognized her denmate Ashkit, who was three moons older than her.

"I-I'm fine, thanks." Dreamkit meowed shakily, standing up.

"Got a bit excited, huh?" Ashkit chuckled softly.

Dreamkit shuffled her paws, feeling hot beneath her fur. "I guess."

"Hey, don't worry." Ashkit meowed kindly. "You have no idea how many times I've embarrassed myself."

Dreamkit found herself smiling. Ashkit was a good friend. "So where's Dovewhisper?" She asked.

Ashkit's glanced at the camp entrance. "She went hunting." He sighed. "I wish I could have gone with her."

"You'll be able to in two moons though." Dreamkit reminded him.

"That's true." Ashkit perked up, then smiled softly down at her. "I just wish you could be an apprentice with me. You're cool."

Dreamkit shuffled her paws again, not knowing what to say. She was saved by Cloudit as her sister called to her. "Gotta go." She meowed quickly to Ashkit. She dashed over to the nursery entrance where Cloudkit sat.

"Where'd you go?" Cloudkit asked.

"I was talking to Ashkit." Dreamkit replied. "He's nice, but I can't get over how tall he is. He's almost as tall as Fuzzpaw and Mosspaw!"

Cloudkit's whiskers twitched. "Just wait until you're next to one of the really strong warriors. They're so big, you'd feel like an ant!"

"Kits! Time to come in!" Both kits pricked their ears as Russetpelt's call sounded from the nursery. Cloudkit dashed off, but Dreamkit followed more slowly. She was thinking about what Cloudkit had said about the strongest warriors. She had said they were big. Did warriors have to be big to be strong? Had Echopaw been right, when she'd said that Dreamkit was too small to be a warrior? She shook her head forcefully. Echopaw couldn't be right. Could she?

7


End file.
